Name:___________________________________ Period: ___________
Physical Fitness
Physical fitness is the ability of your body systems, including your circulatory,
muscular and skeletal systems to work efficiently. Being physically fit means being able
to do physical activity with the least amount of energy, or doing a day’s work with
energy left over for leisure activities.
The Benefits of Daily Physical Activity
There are many benefits from regular exercise. Basically it will improve your
longevity and quality of life. Specifically, Physical fitness will improve your:
___ physical appearance
___ self confidence
___ health (less heart disease, obesity,
backache, high blood pressure, ulcers)
___ enjoyment of life
___ relaxation
___ energy level
___ muscular development
___ ability to sleep
___ flexibility
Rank these benefits listed above from 1 to 9, where number 1 is the benefit that you
consider most important to you, and 9 is the least important.
Regular exercise affects your personal appearance to. It will:
___improve posture ___improve body shape
___reduce body fat ___define muscles
___make body movement more efficient
Rate the above list from 1 to 5, number 1 being the change you would be most pleased
with.Barriers to Daily Physical Activity
Even though people know the importance of exercise, sometimes people make up
excuses not to exercise. List four reasons why you think someone might choose not to
exercise:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Sentence Starters
Complete the following:
A physical activity is best for me if… _________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
Activities I like to do are… ___________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
I am currently active by…__________________________________________________
A new physical activity that I would like to try is…______________________________
Why haven’t you tried this new activity yet?____________________________________
How can you over come this barrier?__________________________________________
Health Related Fitness Components
There are five components of physical fitness (Flexibility, Muscular Strength,
Cardiovascular Fitness, Body Composition & Muscular Endurance) that help us to stay
healthy. Match each to the definition below:
_______________ The ability of the heart, lungs and circulatory system to deliver
oxygen to the body so that it can work for long periods of time.
________________The ability to use your joints through a wide range of motion.
_______________ The percentage of body weight that is fat. Too little or too much body
fat can cause health problems.
________________The amount of force your muscles can produce over a short period of
time.
_________________ The ability of your muscles to work for long periods of time
(standing, running) without tiring.
Cardiovascular Fitness
The best way to improve cardiovascular fitness is to engage in non stop activity for at
least 20 minutes, 3 times a week. Having good cardiovascular fitness increases longevity,
lower risk of diseases, and you can work longer without being tired.
What activities are you currently doing that are good for cardiovascular fitness? If you
are not doing anything, what could you do?
Muscular Strength
Having good muscle strength will help you perform better in sports and will keep you
from falling or having injuries. The best way to increase muscle strength is to constantly
increase the load on the muscle when exercising, lift heavy weight with few reps, 3 times
a week or every other day.
Muscle Endurance
Having good muscle endurance will let you work longer without getting tired as quickly,
have fewer muscle injuries, and will help you perform better in work or sports. You can
increase your muscle endurance by exercising a muscle for longer than 3 minutes at a
time and lifting weights every other day or 3 times a week.
Flexibility
Good flexibility will allow you to have an advantage in sports or work and fewer joint
injuries. In order to improve your flexibility you must stretch daily. It is important
to do a warm up before stretching in order to stretch the joints and muscles so they do not
stretch too far and tear.
Name two stretches we do that stretch our legs.
Name two stretches we do that stretch our arms.
Body Composition
The body is made up of fat, lean tissue (muscle and bone) and water. You want to
maximize the lean tissue and minimize the fat by exercising.
BMI stands for Body Mass Index. The most healthy range for your BMI is 20-25. If your
BMI is too low, you will not have enough body fat to provide energy, protect vital
organs, make hormones, store vitamins, or insulate body from the cold. If your BMI is
too high, you have a higher risk of obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke,
diabetes, and cancer.
If a BMI is too high, how can someone best reduce it to lower health risks?
Google “BMI calculator”. Click on the first website. Enter in your height and weight to
find out your BMI.
To improve your present fitness level in this component do you need to raise or lower
your BMI? _____________
Skill Related Fitness Components
There are six skill related components of fitness (Agility, Balance, Power, Speed,
Coordination, reaction time). These components do not contribute to good health but
rather assist in improved performance of skills used for example in games and sports.
Agility
ability to change direction quickly
Balance
ability to keep upright posture
Co-ordination ability to use many body parts
together
Power
ability to use strength explosively, in one
big effort for a short time
Reaction
Speed
time taken to start movement
ability to move a distance in a short
period of time
Review Questions
1. What are the benefits of exercise?
2. What are the five components of physical fitness?
3. What is the best way to improve cardiovascular fitness?
4. What is the best way to increase muscle strength?
5. What is the best way to increase muscle endurance?
6. Why is it important to do a warm up before stretching?
7. What does BMI stand for?
8. What could happen if your BMI is too high?
9. Do the six skill related components of fitness contribute to good health?
10. What does agility mean?
11. What does balance mean?
12. What does coordination mean?
13. What does power mean?
14. What does reaction mean?
15. What does speed mean?
10 of these questions will be on the test. Study all of them